Arkansas History Test #2
WPA interviews
surviving ex-slaves in the 1930.
What were "slave codes"?
It was this fear of rebellion that led each colony to pass a series of laws restricting slaves' behaviors.
What part of Arkansas was strongest in support of the Union?
Little Rock
Samuel Curtis
Was the Union general responsible for the victory at the Battle of Pea Ridge, the capture of Helena (Phillips County), and the repulse of Price's 1864 invasion of Missouri and Kansas.
What percentage of Arkansas owned slaves in 1860?
25%
"The boy martyr of the Confederacy"
17 year-old David Owen Dodd of Little Rock was hanged as a spy by the Union army. He has been called the "boy hero of Arkansas." His story has inspired tributes such as the epic poem The Long, Long Thoughts of Youth by Marie Erwin Ward, a full-length play, and even reportedly a 1915 silent Hollywood movie, which has not survived. Historical markers, monuments, annual reenactments of his execution, and the naming of the David O. Dodd Elementary School in southwest Little Rock are among the state's recognitions of his life and death.
"200 pounds a day"
??
How did General Curtis' actions affect Thomas Hindman during the Civil War?
??
How did the Civil War in Arkansas change after the Battles of Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove?
??
What caused the North to change its mind and not just let the South go?
??
The Red River Raft
A massive logjam on the Red River stretching over a hundred miles upriver from near Natchitoches, Louisiana. The raft obstructed travel on the middle reaches of the Red until it was cleared by Henry M. Shreve in the years between 1833 and 1838.
Earl Van Dorn
A noted Mexican War veteran and Indian fighter, was the Confederate general defeated at the Battle of Pea Ridge and at Corinth, Mississippi. Following the defeat at Pea Ridge, he stripped Arkansas of badly needed Confederate troops, leaving the state nearly destitute of defenders.
Single Pen
A one-room structure, sixteen to eighteen foot square, made from oak logs.
The "Family"
A powerful alliance that dominated the Arkansas Democratic Party and state politics in the years between statehood and the Civil War. Many of its members were related by blood or marriage. Principal members included Ambrose Sevier, James Conway, Benjamin Johnson, and Chester Ashley. Also known as "the Dynasty."
What persuaded the Cherokees to side with the Confederacy?
Albert Pike
Who did the Confederacy send as their agent to the Indians?
Albert Pike
Elkhorn Tavern
Battle of Pea Ridge.
John Ross
Also known as Guwisguwi (meaning in Cherokee a "Little White Bird"), was the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1828-1866, serving longer in this position than any other person. Described as the Moses of his people, he influenced the Indian nation through such tumultuous events as the relocation to Indian Territory and the American Civil War.
The Battle of Arkansas Post
Also known as the Battle of Fort Hindman, was a Civil War battle fought January 9-11, 1863, as Union troops under Major General John A. McClernand sought to stop Confederate harassment of Union shipping on the Arkansas River and possibly to mount an offensive against the Arkansas capital at Little Rock (Pulaski County).
Robert W. Johnson
An Arkansas political leader who represented the state in both chambers of the U.S. Congress and as a congressman and senator in the Confederate Congress.
James Blunt
An aggressive, no-nonsense amateur soldier from Kansas whose zeal for the offensive matched that of Hindman. That very aggressiveness had left him deep in northwest Arkansas and dangerously isolated from the remainder of his army.
Seldon Roane
An ambitious young attorney and Democratic politician, as lieutenant colonel. Was in a harmless duel with Pike.
What happened to Arkansas when Louisiana became a state?
Arkansas became part of Missouri territory, but was ignored by their authorities until Missouri became a state- then Arkansas was named as a territory.
The Arkansas Gazette
Arkansas's first newspaper, was established in 1819, seventeen years before Arkansas became a state. William E. Woodruff published the first edition on November 20, 1819, introducing it as Republican in politics.
Thomas Hindman
Barely five feet tall, hot-tempered son of a prominent Mississippi planter who had served in the Mexican War and in the Mississippi legislature. Had "a wonderful talent for getting into fusses" and another thought that he gave the appearance of being "perpetually anxious to have a duel." Was a prominent attorney and Democratic politician prior to the Civil War. He was a major player in bringing about the state's secession. He subsequently served in the Confederate army as a brigadier general, playing a prominent role in the defense of Arkansas and later serving in the Army of Tennessee.
Parley Pratt
Been brutally stabbed to death near Fort Smith by the angry husband of woman whom he had taken as his tenth wife.
The Dunbar-Hunter Expedition
Began where St. Catherine's Creek meets the Mississippi, about fifteen miles below Natchez, on October 16, 1804. Reported many encounters with European trappers, hunters, planters, and settlers as well as fellow river travelers plying the waters of the Red, Black and Ouachita rivers. First reports to Jefferson describing the landscapes and people within the new territory.They did succeed in the first scientific mapping and description of the Ouachita River valley. Their journals reveal an active European presence in the region, with numerous small settlements and individual homesteaders, trappers, and traders who had been utilizing the natural resources of the region for decades.
Log Cabins
Houses
The Real Estate Bank of Arkansas
Chartered by the first state legislature. It was designed to promote the interests of the state's planters. The bank issued loans on inflated land valuations, and by 1841 it was insolvent.
The Bank of Arkansas
Chartered by the first state legislature. It was designed to serve as a repository for all state funds and to promote business activity throughout the state. Through corruption, mismanagement, and a national economic downturn, the bank was declared insolvent in 1843.
"Five Civilized Tribes"
Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole. Their cooperation with the Confederacy was considered critical to the defense of the Indian Territory.
How did the Cherokee and Osage come into conflict?
Cherokees were flooding into Arkansas and ultimately into the Osages territory north of the Arkansas river.
Sterling Price
Confederate general and former Missouri governor, has been called by one historian "the central figure in the Civil War west of the Mississippi." Was a lawyer, planter, and politician from the U.S. state of Missouri, who served as the 11th Governor of the state from 1853 to 1857.
What happened during the Battle of Poison Spring that made the battle famous?
Confederate troops ambushed and destroyed a Union foraging expedition. After black Union troops had surrendered, many were killed by the Confederate troops.
Patrick Cleburne
Considered to be one of the best divisional commanders in the Confederate service.
Nathaniel Lyon
Early Union heroes of the war.
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Established the procedures by which territories of the United States would become states and banned slavery in the northwest territories.
James Bowie & Bowie #1
Had claims to thousands of acres of land in Arkansas, almost all of them fraudulent. Bowie knife was a large knife specifically designed for use in personal combat. Named for Jim Bowie, a member of a pioneer family who settled in early Arkansas and Louisiana. (first one in Washington, Arkansas, in the 1820s)
How did Thomas Hindman affect Arkansas politics?
He brought down "the family".
Archibald Yell
He was a leading proponent of statehood. A larger than life and colorful figure in Arkansas history, was Arkansas's first congressman, second governor, founder of Arkansas's first Masonic lodge, and Mexican War hero. He was a consummate, magnetic politician. Yell County and Yellville (Marion County) were named for him.
Where and how did Archibald Yell get killed?
He was killed in the Mexican War when he was fighting.
Describe Thomas Hindman's actions after arriving in Arkansas during the Civil War.
He was unique among conservatives, however, in encouraging acceptance of African-American suffrage and organization of black voters into support of the conservative cause.
The Mountain Meadow Massacre
Incident that occurred in 1857 when a party of 135 Arkansans headed for California was attached in southern Utah by a combination of Paiute Indians and Mormons. After surrendering to the Mormons under a promise of protection, over a hundred members of the party, including men, women, and children, were massacred.
Why was Little Rock chosen as the capital of Arkansas?
It was centrally located on the River, and William Russell wanted to make the most out of his investment of Little Rock.
What notorious event happened on the floor of the Arkansas General Assembly during an 1837 special session?
Joseph Anthony refused John Wilson's order to take his seat and Wilson charged him and physically assaulted Anthony--Wilson fatally stabbed Anthony Wilson was tried and acquitted of murder, expelled from the legislature.
Powell Clayton
Kansas officer who had fought at Wilson's Creek, Helena, and in the Little Rock campaign. Many Arkansas Confederates considered him to be the best Union cavalry officer west of the Mississippi River. Was an engineer, a Union Army general in the American Civil War and the first Reconstruction Republican governor of Arkansas. He was appointed as United States Ambassador to Mexico during the administrations of U.S. Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.
Albert Pike
Lawyer who played a major role in the development of the early courts of Arkansas and played an active role in the state's politics prior to the Civil War. He also was a central figure in the development of Masonry in the state and later became a national leader of that organization. During the Civil War, he commanded the Confederacy's Indian Territory, raising troops there and exercising field command in one battle. He also was a talented poet and writer.
What were the largest churches in Arkansas?
Methodist Churches
Arkansas' sister state
Michigan
How did Arkansas compare with Michigan in education in 1850?
Michigan had 2,714 public schools to Arkansas's 353 and 110,445 pupils in public schools compared to Arkansas's 8,493. Michigan derived $88,879 for public schools from taxes, while Arkansas collected $250. Michigan reported 7,812 adult white illiterates, Arkansas 16,819. In addition Michigan had 280 public libraries containing 65,116 volumes, while Arkansas had one public library with 250 volumes.
William Lovely
Negotiated in 1818, this purchase of a triangular tract of land north of the Arkansas River was intended to provide a buffer between the Osage and Cherokee, then engaged in an intense struggle.
The New Madrid Earthquake
Occurred between December 16, 1811, and February 7, 1812. The worst to hit North America, the first shock occurred at 2:00 A.M. on December 16, 1811. In the town of New Madrid in southeastern Missouri. A sign that Indians had chosen the wrong path in accepting white influences, and many heeded his call for a return to tradition and a rejection of white acculturation. New lakes were created and old ones went dry. Created the Arkansas "sunk lands," an area that became swampy and subject to complete inundation every spring.
Whigs
Opposition to Andrew Jackson, protective tariffs, fed funded internal improvements, Second Bank of the US led by Henry Clay.
Pea Ridge
Played a pivotal role in securing Missouri for the Union and opened Arkansas to Union occupation. It played a large role in preserving Missouri's tenuous loyal-state status. The battle was one of the bloodiest west of the Mississippi. The Confederates suffered about 2,000 casualties. The Union had 1,384 casualties.
Who were George Baker and Alexander Fancher?
Took people to California, seasoned travelers from the gold rush days, headed the caravan of the people of the Mountain Meadow Massacre.
Which Indians adopted a lot of white culture and which tribes did not?
Quapaws and Cherokees did and Osage did not.
George Izard
Scholar, soldier, and army major general, served as Arkansas's second territorial governor from March 4, 1825, until his death on November 22, 1828. Finding government in Arkansas disorganized and ineffective, he began the task of organizing territorial government into a more effective and efficient institution.
James Miller
Served as a brigadier general during the War of 1812, was the first governor of the Arkansas Territory and served as superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Arkansas Territory.
The Louisiana Purchase
The Arkansas region came into the possession of the United States by virtue of the ____ of 1803. When James Monroe arrived in Paris on April 11, he discovered that on the previous day, the French offered to sell not only New Orleans but all of Louisiana., approximately 828,000 square miles. Surprised at the proposal but recognizing the implications, Monroe and Livingston pursued the offer, and on April 30, 1803, they complete a treaty making the United States the purchaser of the Louisiana Territory for the asking price of $15 million. Extension of military and governmental authority.
The Battle of Helena
The Confederate attack on the Mississippi River town of Helena (Phillips County) was, for the size of the forces engaged (nearly 12,000), as desperate a fight as any in the Civil War, with repeated assaults on heavily fortified positions similar to the fighting that was to be seen in 1864 in General Ulysses Grant's overland campaign in Virginia and General William T. Sherman's Atlanta, Georgia, campaign. It was the Confederates' last major offensive in Arkansas and the last Confederate attempt to seize a potential choke point on the Mississippi.
Shelby's Raid
Was an 1863 Confederate cavalry raid through the Trans-Mississippi Theater in the American Civil War. Colonel Joseph Shelby fought numerous skirmishes and caused great disruption in Missouri before withdrawing back to Arkansas. This raid cemented Shelby's reputation as a cavalry commander and revealed that Missouri was still vulnerable to cavalry raids late in the war.
Ben McCulloch
The first general Confederate officer in Arkansas, had been commissioned a brigadier general in the Confederate army in May 1861 and given the task of keeping Federal forces out of Arkansas and the Indian Territory.
Know Nothings
The other new party to develop in the 1850s was the American Party, they answered "I know nothing" to inquiries about the party's composition and goals.
Military Road
The route across Arkansas from Memphis to Fort Smith which is I-40 today, intended to facilitate defense of the frontier, opened 16 ft wide and cleared.
Henry Rector
The state's sixth governor. He was part of Arkansas's political dynasty during the antebellum period, but he was not always comfortable in that role and played a part in its downfall.
Stand Watie
The talented Cherokee leader, had risen to the rant of brigadier general in the Confederate army.
What part of Arkansas was strongest in support of the Confederacy?
The town of Washington.
What happened during the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry that made the battle famous?
They had to build a pontoon bridge. They began to cross it heading toward the north bank. It rained so hard there that mules lost their footing and the riverbank soon became "a sea of mud."
When did the Whig Party dominate Arkansas politics?
They never did.
36 degrees 30 minutes north latitude
This dividing line would become a crucial factor in the famous Missouri Compromise, which allowed Missouri to enter the Union as an exception to this general rule.
Dog Trot (double pen)
Two cabins built side by side under a common roof with an open area in between. (more elaborate)
Frederick Steele
Was a career military officer in the United States Army, serving as a major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was most noted for his successful campaign to retake much of secessionist Arkansas for the Union cause.
Bowie No. 1
Was a large knife specifically designed for use in personal combat. Named for Jim Bowie, a member of a pioneer family who settled in early Arkansas and Louisiana. (first one in Washington, Arkansas, in the 1820s) Thirteen-inch knife, an engraving on the escutcheon plate, possibly the original knife.
Whig Party
Was a national political party whose chief organizing principle was opposition to Andrew Jackson. They also favored an economic program that included protective tariffs, federally funded internal improvements, and a second Bank of the United States.
John Marmaduke
Was a regular army officer from the divided border-state of Missouri, who became a Confederate Major general during the American Civil War. Serving in Arkansas, he aroused controversy by killing his own commander in a duel, and was then accused of murdering African-American soldiers in the Red River Campaign. He became Governor of Missouri in 1884, successfully campaigning for railroad reform, before dying in office.
Isaac Murphy
Was a teacher, attorney, and eighth governor of Arkansas. After years of relative obscurity, he became nationally famous when, at the Arkansas Secession Convention on May 6, 1861, he not only voted against secession but also resolutely refused to change his vote despite enormous crowd pressure. In 1864, he became the first elected governor of Union-controlled Arkansas.
Robert Crittenden
Was the first secretary and acting governor of the Arkansas Territory; subsequently, he was the first person to serve in the role now known as the lieutenant governor of Arkansas. He was a prominent member of the Arkansas bar, candidate for territorial delegate to Congress in 1833, and political powerbroker in territorial Arkansas.
Prairie Grove
Was the last time two armies of almost equal strength faced each other for control of northwest Arkansas. When the Confederate Army of the Trans-Mississippi withdrew from the bloody ground on December 7, 1862, the Union forces claimed a strategic victory. It seemed clear that Missouri and northwest Arkansas would remain under Federal protection.
"Sister states"
Where different states become states at the same time.
What came to symbolize the essence of slavery?
Whipping?
What symbolized the essence of slavery"?
Whipping?
Elisha Worthington
Whose 12,500 acres and 543 slaves made him, by 1860, the largest landowner and slaveholder in the state and one of the largest in the South, established a lasting relationship with a slave woman that produced two children.
How did the outcome of each battle affect Arkansas?
Wilson's Creek: For many of the two thousand Arkansas soldiers involved, Wilson's Creek ended forever the notion of war as a romantic endeavor. Pea Ridge: Arkansas suffered a defeat from which it would never fully recover. Prairie Grove: Arkansas would remain under Federal protection.
